Paganoonoo = upcycle sewing made simple. We design upcycled fashions that are classic/arty, flattering, with plenty of hip and belly room and sell instructions so you can duplicate our designs. Upcycle sewing is easy on the budget, good for the planet and all the tough bits are already complete, like buttonholes, collars, plackets, etc! Our commitment is that you have access to successfully transforming existing clothing into new creations.

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Antoine, Guest Blogger from Vavavida, Artisan Sourced Jewelry

Being ethical is capital

Hi, my name is Antoine owner of Vavavida and I am honored to be
able to share my story here. Michelle’s mission for social justice and passion
for social entrepreneurship are very much aligned with mine. Both she and I work hard to bring you beautiful, fair and
sustainable fashionable products with a story to tell.

Let me tell you the story of a girl I know. Sana
is a young woman from a rural and very poor part of India. Being a woman in the rural, severely
underprivileged northern part of India is difficult, to say the least.
India ranks 158th out of 168 countries on the gender equality index.

For Sana growing up, opportunities were
bleak so she left school and went to the city as a tween to work and help her
family survive. She joined her father and a group of mostly female artisans in
a metal casting workshop in the heart of Old Delhi and started working as a
jewelry maker for local tradesmen. It’s a physically demanding and
delicate job in the best of circumstances. It requires a great deal of skills
and hard work over long work shifts. The shop where she worked was small,poorly
ventilated, cramped with other artisans and generally unsafe and
unsanitary due to a lack of equipment and funds. They were
routinely mistreated by their clients, forced to working in unsafe
conditions for minimal wages and pressured into delivering tight
deadlines.

Unfortunately, this story is a very common one
in India. But where Sana’s story differs from most others is that she was
able to find a solution. In 2009, Sana searched and found an Indian importer-exporter
of fair trade jewelry with a base in Texas who appreciated their work, skills
and designs.

Sana and her colleagues decided to change their business
operations and partner with the importer on a permanent basis. Since applying
the fair trade principles to their business model, their lives and livelihoods
has tremendously improved. After a few short years of constant personal and
professional growth, they were able to take the next step in sustainability and
created an evening education program for their members. Sana is now enrolled in
that program and she will be the first woman in her community to go to college.
She plans on gaining the professional skills that will help her to one daytake over her aging
father’s place as the head of this successful co-op.

The reason I know Sana and her
story is because we work with her and her family. Although Vavavida does not
have a production facility, we work with many artisan co-ops across several
continents by purchasing their wares and retailing them. This is why we do what
we do. We want to make this success story the rule.

Many studies have demonstrated the
importance of women’s
access to education for the success of a community. With Women Equality Day
just behind us, it’s important to remember that about 70% of the world’s poor are
women. In countries like Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, women and girls make
up around 70% of the apparel sweatshop workers and are often treated
as property rather than as human beings. The Noble Peace Prize winner and Pakistani
education activist Malala took a bullet to the head because she wanted to
be independent and was outspoken about her right as a woman to go to
school.

Breaking away from this
situation and replacing it with empowered and educated women may be the
most important thing we can do to help a community, a nation and the world
grow. Even though women are the most affected by poverty, they are also more
likely to raise a community out of poverty. Many developing countries
stunt their ability to thrive because girls and women are mistreated,
preventing their access to basic education. Sana’s success is a reality and fair trade
can be part of the solution.

The simple act of purchasing products from
companies that promote women’s rights and education can have a tremendous
ripple effect down the line.

I encourage you to change your shopping habits and
be mindful of tag on the item.

Nowadays, looking good and changing someone’s
life for the better has never been so easy.